:38S5 


St.  Mark's  Sixtieth  Anniversary 
1850-1910 

A  Discourse  delivered  in 

Sunday,  December  25th,   1910 
at  Evening  Service 


by  the  Rector 


REV.  SPENCER  S.  ROCHE.  D.D. 


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PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


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Presented    by&0(£/V^^   3v~-  O  .  Wo O V^  <£/  ^3)  rX). 


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[*      OCT  1 9  1911 


ST.  MARK'S  SIXTIETH  ANNIVERSARY 
1850-1910 

A  Discourse  delivered  in 

i>t.  iiark  s  ([Il|urrl|,  Irooklgn 

Sunday,  December  25th,    1910 
at  Evening  Service 

by  the  Rector 
REV.  SPENCER  S.   ROCHE.   D.D. 


PRESS   OF    HUNTER   COLLINS,    INC. 

133    LIVINGSTON    STREET 

BROOKLYN,    N.   Y. 

1911 


SOME    REMINISCENCES    OF    THE    CLERGY 
OF    ST.    MARK'S.    BROOKLYN 


"Remember  them  that  had  the  rule  over  you,  which  spake  unto  you 
the  word  of  God :  and  considering  the  issue  of  their  life,  imitate  their 
faith." — Heb.  13:7. 

We  should  make  a  great  mistake  if  on  the  Sixtieth  Anni- 
versary of  our  parochial  existence  we  should  content  our- 
selves with  calling  up  a  picture  of  the  period  of  our  begin- 
ning, in  city  and  nation,  in  society  and  the  Church.  Nor  is 
it  enough  to  dwell  sentimentally  on  our  edifices;  nor  should 
we  be  satisfied  with  an  ecstatic  musical  outburst  of  gratitude. 
We  should  by  no  means  forget  those  messengers  of  God  who 
have  celebrated  so  many  Communions  at  our  altar,  and  who 
have  taught  so  many  from  our  pulpit. 

Now  that  the  Parish  has  reached  the  very  respectable 
longevity  of  three-score,  it  will  surely  be  interesting  to  pause 
and  send  our  thoughts  backward  to  the  men  whom  God  has 
commissioned  to  speak  His  Word  to  us  and  to  our  parents 
and  grandparents  in  these  four  edifices.  Good  men  they 
were  and  true,  in  spite  of  many  a  discouragement. 

It  is  much  to  be  feared  that  these  devout  and  learned  men, 
perhaps  not  without  failings  themselves,  had  much  to  endure 
from  ill  health,  and  from  apathy  on  the  part  of  the  people. 
While  God  sent  them,  men  did  not  always  welcome  them 
with  sympathy  and  generosity.  Let  us  render  them  a  tardy 
tribute  of  veneration. 

Rev.  Francis  Peck,  the  first  Rector,  was  born  May  2, 
181 1,  at  Bristol,  Rhode  Island.  He  graduated  at  Brown  Uni- 
versity, in  1833,  and  studied  for  the  ministry  under  Bishop 
Griswold,  who  ordained  him  deacon  at  Boston,  September  15, 
1833,  and  advanced  him  to  the  priesthood  at  Providence, 
Rhode  Island,  December  18,  1834.     After  officiating  as  a  lay 

3 


reader  at  St.  Michael's,  Bristol,  Rhode  Island,  Mr.  Peck  had 
a  work  in  Baltimore.  From  this  he  was  invited  to  St.  An- 
drew's, Providence.  From  St.  Andrew's  he  was  called  to 
take  charge  of  the  new  venture  at  St.  Mark's,  Brooklyn. 
Here  he  remained  till  1859. 

He  made  very  careful  annual  statements  regarding  his 
work  and  these  were  published  in  the  annual  reports  of  the 
Benevolent  Society  of  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity. 
Study  of  these  records  shows  that  Mr.  Peck  had  far  juster 
opinions  of   the  needs  and  prospect  than  were  held  by  others. 

The  reports  offered  at  the  Sixth  Anniversary  of  the  Benev- 
olent Association,  March  9,  1856,  showed  that  the  mortgage  on 
St.  Mark's,  originally  $1,200,  had  been  reduced  to  $100,  and 
also  gave  evidence  of  a  widening  breach  between  the  Mission 
and  its  founders.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Lewis,  Rector  of  Holy  Trin- 
ity, speaking  for  the  Benevolent  Association  in  connection 
with  St.  Mark's,  says:  "An  increased  portion  of  the  ex- 
penses has  been  borne  by  those  who  worship  at  St.  Mark's 
and  it  is  proposed  to  put  upon  them  a  yet  larger  share  during 
the  coming  year,  leaving  us  more  in  funds  for  various  other 
objects.  It  must  be  gratifying  to  our  friends  and  patrons  in 
these  days,  when  so  much  attention  is  awakened  to  City  Mis- 
sions, to  know  that  our  own  enterprise  has  been  sustained 
with  steady  hand  for  six  years,  with  ever-growing  success 
and  with  the  happiest  results.  We  may  challenge  the  history 
of  such  efforts  in  our  own  day  and  neighborhood,  to  show 
larger  or  better  fruits  from  so  small  an  outlay  of  expendi- 
ture." 

The  Rev.  Francis  Peck,  with  his  familiarity  with  the  prac- 
tical work  of  the  Mission,  speaks  in  another  strain. 

"Largely  dependent  as  we  are  upon  this  Association,  it  is 
difficult  for  the  people  themselves  to  form  a  centre  of  opera- 
tions within  themselves.  And  as  engagement  is  the  parent 
of  interest,  and  interest  the  mother  of  self-denying  exertion, 
it  would  be  to  expect  offspring  without  parentage  to  hope  for 
a  spirit  of  ardent  self-sacrificing   charity,  without  connecting 

4 


the  congregation  as  a  body  more  directly  with  what  is,  under 
ordinary  circumstances,  felt  to  be  their  work.  But  further 
than  this:  it  is  not  forgotten  that  the  purpose  for  which  St. 
Mark's  was  erected,  was  that  it  might  forever  remain  a  free 
church.  The  utmost  publicity  has  been  given  to  this  fact. 
With  the  principle,  itself,  in  its  moral  bearings,  it  is  not  my 
purpose  to  speak;  but  ample  experience  warrants  me  in  say- 
ing, and  justice  to  the  Church  which  I  represent  demands 
that  I  should  state,  that,  viewed  in  connection  with  pecuniary 
result,  the  whole  working  of  a  free  church  is  utterly  at  war 
with  such  result.  The  theory  is  a  beautiful  one,  but  practi- 
cally it  is,  financially  speaking,  an  error.  '  It  is  more  blessed 
to  give  than  to  receive.'  We  cannot  teach  the  reverse  of  this 
lesson  without  its  being  easily  seized  upon  by  the  selfishness 
of  the  avaricious,  and  its  exerting  a  blighting  upon  the  gen- 
erosity of  the  generous." 

The  report  of  the  Benevolent  Association,  March  4,  1857, 
says : 

"During  our  last  year's  troubles  St.  Ann's  has  kindly  re- 
lieved us  of  the  support  of  St.  Mark's,  so  far  as  anything  was 
needful  beyond  its  own  income.  There  is  a  general  feeling 
among  our  people  that  St.  Mark's  must  by  all  means  be  re- 
tained for  the  purposes  for  which  it  was  originally  erected 
and  our  first  effort  should  be  to  stand  in  our  former  rela- 
tions to  it.  We  can  do  this  if  nothing  more  be  required  of  us 
than  St.  Ann's  has  been  asked  to  furnish,  viz.  about  $300." 

The  individual  report  of  Francis  Peck  shows  that  St. 
Mark's  congregation  had  raised  $1,266.93. 

The  Ninth  Anniversary  of  the  Benevolent  Association  was 
held  March  2,  1859.     The  report  begins: — 

"After  an  interval  of  two  years,  during  which  no  public 
or  published  statement  of  the  affairs  of  the  Benevolent  Asso- 
ciation has  been  made,  for  the  very  good  reason  that  during 
that  time,  thru  the  embarrassed  state  of  our  parish,  it  was 
judged  best  to  undertake  nothing  in  charitable  operations — 
St.  Mark's  has  been  thrown  on  its  own  resources,  as  we  were 

5 


unable  to  do  more  than  to  pay  the  insurance  money  on  the 
building  and  to  allow  the  use  of  it  without  rent.  The  Vestry 
of  that  church  have  found  great  difficulty  in  meeting  its  ex- 
penses and  Mr.  Peck  has  been  compelled  to  resign.  It  will 
now  be  our  duty  in  connection  with  the  Vestry  of  St.  Mark's, 
to  take  action  as  to  the  call  of  a  new  rector.  It  should  be 
maintained,  but  we  can  do  nothing  towards  sustaining  it.  We 
were  wise  to  retain  the  property  in  our  hands;  for  should  the 
church  fail,  as  many  think  it  must,  all  that  can  be  saved 
from  it  should  of  right  come  back  to  us.  " 

After  his  resignation,  Mr.  Peck  took  charge  of  a  mission 
work  in  New  York,  started  by  some  of  the  parishioners  of 
Grace  Church,  in  an  edifice  on  the  present  site  of  the  Grand 
Opera  House,  at  Eighth  Avenue  and  Twenty-third  Street. 
In  the  Journal  of  the  Primary  Convention  of  Long  Island,  held 
in  November,  1868,  he  appears  as  rector  of  Calvary  Church, 
in  the  Eastern  District.  It  was  about  1881  that  he  resigned 
this  position,  retiring  to  a  dignified  residence  belonging  to 
him  in  Dean  Street.  His  death  occurred  June  14,  1888.  In 
a  sermon  preached  at  St.  Mark's  at  the  Semi-Centennial 
Celebration  in  1900,  by  the  Rev.  William  Hooper,  this  tribute 
is  paid  Mr.  Peck:  "A  more  perfect  specimen  of  a  Christian 
gentleman  and  a  Christian  priest,  I  have  seldom  seen.  Digni- 
fied in  his  bearing,  yet  affable  and  courteous  to  all,  never 
sparing  himself  and  never  neglecting  a  single  known  duty." 

Bishop  Littlejohn,  in  his  address  to  the  Convention  of 
1889,  says  of  him:  "A  man  of  earnest  purpose  and  affection- 
ate disposition,  always  true  to  his  own  ideals  of  a  minister  of 
Christ,  he  strove  amid  many  trials  and  difficulties,  and  with 
such  powers  as  God  had  given  him,  to  make  known  among 
men  the  way  of  eternal  life.  His  heart  went  out  in  tender 
sympathy  to  the  sheep  of  his  flock,  and  all  who  came  under 
bis  care  felt  the  warmth  and  comfort  of  a  true  pastor's  love." 

Rev.  Edmund  Embury  was  born  in  New  York  City, 
April  13,  1809,  of   a    wealthy  family.     He   graduated  at  Col- 


umbia  College,  School  of  Arts,  in  1828,  and  at  the  General 
Theological  Seminary  in  1834.  He  was  ordered  deacon  by 
Bishop  Onderdonk  in  St.  Thomas'  Church,  New  York,  the 
same  year,  spending  his  diaconate  as  Missionary  at  Turin, 
Lewis  County,  New  York.  His  ordination  to  the  priesthood 
took  place  in  1835,  at  the  hands  of  Bishop  Onderdonk,  in 
Trinity  Church,  New  York. 

In  1844  he  was  officiating  as  Missionary  at  East  Bloomfield 
and  parts  adjacent  in  Ontario  County.  In  1847  the  list  in 
the  General  Convention  Journal  places  him  as  rector  of  Em- 
manuel Church,  New  York.  We  find  him  next  in  1850,  min- 
ister at  St.  Thomas'  Church,  New  Windsor,  Orange  County. 
He  now  resided  for  several  years  in  New  York  and  Brooklyn, 
performing  services  in  Emmanuel  Church,  Brooklyn,  and 
also  in  two  parishes  in  the  Eastern  District  of  Brooklyn, — 
St.  Paul's,  which  has  since  ceased  to  exist,  and  St.  Mark's, 
Rev.  Dr.  Haskins,  rector,  which  afterward  removed  to  the 
Eastern  Parkway.  His  work  at  our  own  St.  Mark's  fell  in 
the  summer  of  1859. 

There  were  many  encouraging  facts.  People  had  shown 
interest  and  self-sacrifice.  Holy  Trinity  and  St.  Ann's 
would,  if  appealed  to,  certainly  have  continued  at  least  some 
part  of  their  aid.  The  Convocation  for  Church  Extension 
would  have  helped.  Bnt  Mr.  Embury  at  the  lowest  ebb- 
period  of  the  year  in  our  churches,  just  after  the  summer,  re- 
signed on  October  20.  The  record  of  the  Vestry  meeting 
held  October  26,  1859,  closes  with  the  words:  "It  was  moved 
that  we  continue  services  one  week  longer.     Carried." 

A  foot-note  after  the  signature  of  the  Clerk  of  the  Vestry 
reads:  "At  this  point  all  were  discouraged  and  seriously  con- 
templated disbanding." 

Mr.  Embury  recorded  no  baptism,  funeral  or  marriage. 

Of  Mr.  Embury,  Mr.  Hooper  says: 

"I  remember  Mr.  Embury  well,  though  he  was  but  a 
short  time  with  the  parish.  He  was  a  quiet,  scholarly  man, 
very  precise  in  his  manner,  yet   of   most   kindly  disposition, 

7 


He  was  a  good  preacher  and  a  faithful  pastor.  His  health, 
however,  had  always  been  delicate,  and  the  work  at  St. 
Mark's,  with  a  new  church  in  prospect,  combined  with  the 
ordinary  parish  work,  and  the  always  hard  task  of  raising 
money  for  current  expenses,  soon  proved  too  arduous  for 
him." 

About  1865  Mr.  Embury  settled  in  Plainfield,  New  Jersey, 
occupying  a  large  fine  house  and  taking  charge  of  Christ 
Church.  In  1869,  on  land  adjoining  his  residence,  and  out  of 
his  private  fortune,  he  built  a  church  for  the  Parish  of  the 
Holy  Cross,  the  entire  cost  of  church  and  land  amounting  to 
$17,000.  This  was  in  a  short  time  freed  from  debt  and  con- 
secrated, and  was  by  Mr.  Embury  deeded  to  the  Vestry,  on 
conditions  that  it  should  ever  be  a  free  church. 

On  account  of  ill  health,  he  seldom  preached,  btit  em- 
ployed an  assistant.  He  continued  to  live  next  door  to  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Cross  until  his  death,  March  25,  1893,  at 
the  age  of  eighty-four. 


Rev.  Thomas  G.  Carver,  D.D.,  became  rector  December 
II,  1859.  He  was  born  in  Wales  about  1821,  but  was  brought 
up  and  educated  in  England.  About  1845  he  became  a  Pres- 
byterian minister.  In  1856  he  came  to  this  country,  entering 
the  New  York  Presbytery.  Soon  after  he  entered  the  Episco- 
pal Church,  probably  in  the  Diocese  of  Connecticut,  for  on  his 
ordination  as  deacon,  he  was  put  in  charge  of  St.  Michael's, 
Naugatuck. 

Mr.  E.  E.  Hotchkiss,  Clerk  of  St.  Michael's  vestry,  states 
that  for  more  than  two  years  he  was  their  rector,  his  letter 
accepting  the  invitation  being  dated  April  25,  1857,  and  his 
letter  of  resignation,  December  i,  1859.  On  his  resignation, 
he  at  once  took  up  work  in  St.  Mark's,  Brooklyn. 

He  was  called  at  a  salary  of  $800,  which  the  vestry  hoped 
soon  to  make  a  thousand.  His  attractive  qualities  speedily 
enlarged   the   number  of   communicants  and  the  removal  of 

a 


the  church  to  a  better  neighborhood  was  projected.  Holy 
Trinity  offered  the  Fleet  Place  edifice  and  grounds  for  $2,000, 
but  the  people  were  averse  to  this  purchase.  The  building 
needed  constant  repair,  while  the  surrounding  community 
was  declining  in  promise.  In  May,  i860,  the  vestry  ordered 
a  plot  of  ground  to  be  bought  at  DeKalb  and  Portland 
Avenues,  75  feet  by  100  feet,  facing  the  park  and  in  the 
midst  of  an  elegantly  settled  region.  The  price  was  $5,000, 
all  of  which  remained  on  mortgage.  After  much  discussion, 
it  was  concluded  to  put  up  a  temporary  edifice,  at  a  cost  not 
to  exceed  $3,000. 

The  Brooklyn  Eagle  of  December  22,  i860,  has  notice  of 
the  approaching  opening  service  of  the  DeKalb  Avenue 
Church,  which  occurred  Sunday,  December  23. 

Mr.  Carver  was  a  man  of  fine  presence,  over  six  feet  in 
height,  erect,  with  clearly  cut  features  and  a  mobile  face. 
He  was  an  admirable  reader  and  as  a  preacher  appealed  suc- 
cessfully to  popular  emotions.  He  made  friends  every- 
where. 

In  his  memorial  discourse  Rev.  William  Hooper  says: 

"Mr.  Carver,  as  I  remember  him,  was  a  man  almost  the 
exact  opposite  of  Mr.  Embury.  Mr.  Embury  was  very  retir- 
ing in  his  manner,  while  Mr.  Carver  was  very  aggressive. 
He  had  been  brought  up  outside  of  the  Church,  and  had 
many  of  the  ways  of  a  sectarian  minister.  He  was  not  a  par- 
ticularly cultured  man,  not  a  very  great  scholar.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  was  a  stirring  preacher  and  a  most  vigorous 
worker.  He  was  a  man  well  adapted  to  take  charge  of  the 
parish  at  this  crisis.  His  attractive  preaching  and  genial  man- 
ner soon  filled  the  church,  keeping  together  the  old  congre- 
gation and  continually  adding  new  recruits. 

"He  took  a  strong  interest  in  the  Sunday  School,  which 
prospered  under  his  direction.  He  always  made  it  a  practice 
to  speak  individually  to,  and  to  shake  hands  with,  every 
scholar  present." 

Mr.    Quennell    says    that    Carver   was   a    very    brilliant 

9 


preacher,  and  tells  one  or  two  stories  about  him,  locating 
quite  accurately  the  time  of  his  departure  from  the  parish. 
In  Mr.  Quennell's  words: 

"Good  Friday,  1861,  he  called  me  into  the  vestry  and  said 
to  me  in  a  whisper: — '  Say  nothing  about  it,  but  we  are  to 
have  flowers  on  the  altar  on  Easter.  Some  people  would  cer- 
tainly object  if  they  knew.'  Easter  Day  two  flat  little  bou- 
quets in  lace-paper  were  laid  one  each  on  the  corners  of  the 
altar  so  that  from  the  body  of  the  church  they  could  not  be 
seen.  This  was  the  beginning  of  Easter  flowers  at  St. 
Mark's. 

"On  the  Festival  of  St.  Philip  and  St.  James,  May  i,  he 
was  preaching  on  the  day.  I  told  him  after  the  sermon  that 
he  had  got  hold  of  the  wrong  St.  James.  He  answered, — 
'Don't  tell  the  people  and  they  will  never  find  out;  besides, 
it  is  my  last  sermon  to  the  parish.' " 

Not  long  after  the  completion  of  the  DeKalb  Avenue  edi- 
fice, the  war  broke  out,  and  in  the  spring  of  186 1  Mr.  Carver 
resigned  St.  Mark's  and  became  Chaplain  to  the  17th  Regi- 
ment New  York  State  Volunteers,  transferring  his  canonical 
residence  back  to  Connecticut.  He  served  as  Chaplain  thru 
the  war  and  saw  much  service  on  the  field.  With  the  return 
of  peace,  he  is  found  at  Louisville,  Kentucky.  In  1866  he 
became  rector  of  St.  Paul's,  New  Albany,  Indiana,  where  he 
remained  till  called  to  the  rectorship  of  the  Church  of  the 
Ascension  in  Chicago,  January  5,  1868.  He  took  rank 
promptly  in  the  Diocese  as  a  man  of  ability  in  affairs,  and  as 
a  popular  speaker.  He  preached  the  opening  sermon  before 
the  Convention  of  the  Diocese  in  September.  He  was  active 
on  committees  and  in  demand  as  a  preacher  and  speaker  on 
special  occasions.  He  resigned  his  ministry  July  i,  1869,  re- 
moving to  Danville,  Illinois,  and  taking  charge  of  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Trinity.  He  was  next  rector  of  St.  John's,  La- 
fayette, Indiana.  This  was  perhaps  the  best  work  of  his  life. 
An  interesting  memorial  volume  prepared  by  Jane  C.  Har- 
vey, "History  of  St.  John's  Church   from   1837  to  1887,"  pays 

10 


him  a  fine  tribute.  He  assumed  the  rectorship  in  the  fall  of 
1870,  finding  the  Parish  deep  in  debt,  and  the  Sunday  School 
reduced  to  forty,  scholars  and  teachers  included. 

His  magnetic  preaching  and  attention  to  various  features 
of  organization,  soon  filled  the  church  with  an  active  congre- 
gation. Some  objected  to  his  Scotch  Calvinistic  doctrine,  de- 
claring that  h«  preached  the  law  rather  than  the  Gospel,  but 
all  agreed  that  he  was  a  powerful  preacher,  and  a  singularly 
impressive  reader  of  the  service.  He  looked  closely  after  the 
music,  insisting  that  the  choristers  must  be  devout,  and  he 
arranged  programs  that  attracted  many  strangers.  He  went 
with  enthusiasm  into  the  Sunday  School,  rallied  workers, 
drew  in  children,  planned  festivals  and  organized  Christmas- 
Tree  services  that  were  the  talk  of  the  town.  He  beautified 
the  church  and  led  in  the  getting  of  altar  cloths,  a  committee 
raising  a  hundred  dollars  to  purchase  a  set  of  hangings  in 
scarlet  and  gold.  At  Easter  he  urged  the  people  to  place  in 
the  sanctuary  floral  commemorations  of  the  departed,  giving 
in  the  sermon  a  brief  record  of  all  who  had  died  during  the 
year.  His  Confirmation  classes  were  large,  numbering  many 
mature  and  intelligent  men.  An  indefatigable  worker, 
Dr.  Carver  had  been  for  years  in  poor  health.  Finding  that 
the  climate  of  Indiana  aggravated  his  disease,  he  resigned  his 
post  April  24th,  1874. 

He  next  became  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  Atchison,  Kan- 
sas. Returning  East  in  1876,  he  served  for  several  years  as 
a  missionary  at  Brockton,  Massachusetts,  and  in  Boston.  In 
1880  he  received  the  degree  of  doctor  in  divinity  and  assumed 
charge  of  the  Rutherford  Memorial  Church,  near  Newark, 
New  Jersey.  His  last  work  was  at  Harrison,  New  Jersey, 
his  name  appearing  as  first  assistant  on  the  staff  of  Trinity 
Church,  Newark.  October  1885  he  suffered  from  an  attack 
of  Bright's  disease,  and  thru  the  winter  his  strength  steadily 
declined.  February  i8th  he  penned  a  resignation  from  his 
work,  to  take  effect  March  31.  It  was  his  purpose  to  remove 
to  Newburgh  where   a  son,  George  Carver,  resided.     Death, 

11 


however,    intervened.       He    sank    rapidly,    the    end    coming 
peacefully  Saturday,  February  28,  1886. 

The  funeral  took  place  in  Christ  Church,  Harrison,  well- 
known  laymen  of  Newark  and  Harrison  serving  as  pall- 
bearers and  representing  the  vestries  of  the  two  parishes. 
He  was  buried  at  Newburgh,  New  York. 


The  Rev.  Robert  George  Quennell  was  born  in  London, 
England,  in  1835,  and  came  to  this  country  about  the  year 
1857.  He  was  engaged  for  a  while  in  business,  and,  after 
studying  for  the  ministry,  was  ordained  December  16,  i860. 
Nine  days  later,  on  Christmas,  he  officiated  at  St..  Mark's, 
assisting  the  Rev.  Thomas  G.  Carver.  When  Mr.  Carver  re- 
signed July  I,  186 1,  Mr.  Quennell  was  in  charge  of  the  church 
till  October  ist,  when  Dr.  Cornell  became  rector. 

After  this  Mr.  Quennell  officiated  in  the  Floating  Church 
of  Our  Saviour,  New  York.  He  next  assumed  charge  of  the 
Church  of  St.  John  the  Evangelist,  a  work  he  carried  on  for 
many  years.  From  1883  to  1889  he  was  rector  of  Christ 
Church,  Binghamton,  New  York.  He  was  afterwards  at- 
tached to  the  staff  of  the  Cathedral  of  St.  John  the  Divine. 
The  close  of  his  ministry  was  given  as  assistant  minister  in 
the  Church  of  the  Ascension,  New  York.  His  death  occurred 
May  7,  1908,  and  the  funeral  took  place  at  the  Ascension. 


Rev.  Thomas  Frederick  Cornell,  M.D.,  was  born  in  the 
City  of  New  York  in  1830.  He  was  descended  from  an  ancestor 
who  coming  to  this  country,  settled  in  Boston.  This  family, 
after  two  or  three  generations,  separated,  one  branch  going 
to  Rhode  Island,  another  to  Central  New  York,  and  a  third 
settling  at  Success,  later  called  Lakeview,  in  the  township  of 
North  Hempstead,  Long  Island.  Here  Dr.  Cornell's  great- 
grandfather, grandfather  and  father  were  born.  His  father, 
and   his   mother   who   belonged    to    the  family  of  Munns,  re- 


moved  to  New  York.  At  the  a^e  of  twenty  he  graduated  at 
the  University  of  New  York,  and  three  years  later  completed 
the  course  at  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons.  He 
now,  in  1853,  took  an  extensive  tour  in  Europe. 

The  profession  of  medicine  proved  to  have  little  attraction 
and  was  soon  abandoned  that  he  might  study  for  the  ministry. 
Entering  the  General  Theological  Seminary,  he  received  his 
diploma  in  1857.  His  first  parish  was  the  Church  of  the  Re- 
deemer, Morristown,  New  Jersey.  Thence  he  was  called  to 
the  rectorship  of  St.  Mark's,  the  invitation  from  the  vestry 
being  dated  August  28,  1861.  He  found  the  church  in  a  very 
depressed  condition,  but  his  energetic  administration,  his 
pulpit  ability  and  his  genial  personality  soon  wrought  a  great 
change.  Membership  increased  and  finances  improved.  In 
1865  it  was  decided  to  leave  the  DeKalb  Avenue  site  and  oc- 
cupy the  premises  formerly  held  by  the  Church  of  the 
Messiah. 

After  serving  the  church  for  more  than  eight  years,  fail- 
ing health  obliged  him  to  tender  his  resignation  to  a  vestry 
very  unwilling  to  receive  it.  Leaving  the  work  December  i, 
1869,  he  traveled  in  Europe,  after  which  he  took  up  his  resi- 
dence in  Brooklyn.  In  helping  his  brethren  and  in  various 
missionary  enterprises,  he  found  almost  constant  activity. 
For  a  time  he  assumed  charge  of  the  Church  of  the  Mediator 
and  afterward  was  rector  of  St.  Stephen's,  holding  this  post 
till  his  death,   July  31,   1885. 

He  had  a  mind  of  native  force,  warm  affections,  attractive 
manners.  His  natural  advantages  were  heightened  by  pro- 
longed study  and  foreign  travel.  His  hospitable  home  and 
his  fine  library  became  a  favorite  resort  for  his  clerical 
brethren.  Many  a  busy  Brooklyn  rector  dropped  in  to  ex- 
change pleasantries  or  to  secure  his  services  for  a  heavy  Sun- 
day. He  had  refinement  without  affectation,  wit  without 
acrimony  and  earnestness  without  sensationalism. 

In  his  preaching  he  dwelt  with  emphasis  on  what  are 
known  as  the  Evangelical  doctrines.      He   aimed   at   practical 

13 


and  immediate  results  in  the  minds  and  lives  of  his  hearers. 
He  never  severed  the  fruit  of  good  works  from  the  root  of 
faith.  In  the  declaration  of  the  truth  of  the  Gospel,  he  was 
singularly  fortunate  in  the  possession  of  natural  talents  for 
oratory.  An  easy  flow  of  thought,  excellent  command  of  lan- 
guage, the  ardor  that  in  some  natures  always  accompanies 
the  expression  of  deep  convictions,  and  not  infrequently  that 
rare  and  splendid  gift  of  unction,  were  acknowledged  in  those 
public  efforts  by  which  he  sought  to  promote  sound  doctrine, 
pure  morality  and  a  kindly  Christian  temper. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Hooper  says:  "It  was  my  privilege  to  know 
Dr.  Cornell  well,  both  in  my  younger  days  when  I  was  in  St. 
Mark's  Sunday  School  during  the  first  part  of  his  rectorship, 
and  in  later  years.  In  many  respects  he  was  a  remarkable 
man.  He  combined  the  good  qualities  of  his  two  immediate 
predecessors.  He  was  an  attractive  preacher  and  a  man  of 
peculiarly  attractive  personality.  He  was  a  scholarly  man, 
and  yet  had  none  of  the  faults  of  the  scholar.  He  was  ex- 
ceedingly approachable,  and  there  was  a  peculiar  geniality 
about  his  manner,  which  made  his  presence  always  welcome, 
and  drew  people  to  him  almost  unconsciously.  Under  his 
administration  the  parish  enjoyed  a  season  of  unusual  pros- 
perity." 

Bishop  Littlejohn,  in  his  Convention  Address  for  1886, 
said: 

"He  was  a  man  of  warm  impulses  and  of  strong  intel- 
lectual force.  During  his  last  years  he  labored  hard  and  suc- 
cessfully for  the  prosperity  of  St.  Stephen's,  and  he  was  fol- 
lowed to  his  grave  by  the  whole  parish,  with  every  token  of 
deep  sorrow  for  the  loss  they  had  sustained." 


Rev.  William  T.  Fitch  was  born  in  Macon,  Georgia,  June 
28,  1832,  the  son  of  Lewis  H.  Fitch.  The  family  later  went 
to  New  Haven,  Conn.,  where  the  father  prospered  as  a 
clothier    and    identified    himself    with    the    Congregational 

14 


Church,  serving  for  many  years  as  a  deacon.  In  early  man- 
hood William  left  the  Congregationalists  and,  attracted  by  the 
ministry  of  the  Rev.  A.  N.  Littlejohn,  was  confirmed  in  St. 
Paul's  Parish,  New  Haven.  His  father  started  a  branch  of 
the  business  in  Macon,  and  William  was  sent  there  to  take 
charge.  While  in  Macon,  a  desire  which  he  had  cherished 
for  some  time  to  enter  the  ministry,  was  fulfilled,  and,  on 
the  first  day  after  Easter,  1863,  in  St.  James'  Church,  Mari- 
etta, Georgia,  he  was  admitted  to  the  diaconate  by  Bishop 
Elliott.  He  was  advanced  by  Bishop  Elliott  to  the  priest- 
hood April  21,  1864. 

His  ministry  at  first  was  spent  as  a  missionary  in  Northern 
Georgia;  from  April  1865  to  September  1866,  he  was  rector 
at  Naugatuck,  Conn.,  after  which  he  was  for  a  year  at  Akron, 
Ohio.  From  December  1869  to  the  fall  of  1875,  he  was  rector 
of  St.  Mark's,  Brooklyn.  Here  he  labored  with  great  assidu- 
ity, increasing  the  membership,  beautifying  the  church  edi- 
fice and  winning  the  hearts  of  the  people.  Mr.  Clement 
Lockitt,  our  Senior  Warden,  long  an  honored  member  of  the 
vestry,  speaks  of  "his  amiability  of  character,  his  unvarying 
courtesy  and  his  power  to  create  affection  and  respect  in  those 
who  came  in  contact  with  him." 

Following  this  came  a  five-year  rectorship  at  the  Church 
of  the  Ascension,  Fall  River.  While  here,  he  started  several 
missions  in  the  suburbs,  which  quickly  grew  into  self-sup- 
porting parishes.  In  1881  he  returned  to  Brooklyn  and  per- 
formed mission  work.  In  1895  he  was  minister  in  charge  of 
St.  Michael's,  High  Street,  where  he  remained  for  two  years 
and  a  half.  He  then  became  assistant  minister  at  Grace 
Church  in  the  Eastern  District.  During  his  last  years  he 
rendered  valuable  services  to  many  parishes,  being  in  par- 
ticular favor  as  an  occasional  preacher.  St.  Mark's,  St. 
Luke's,  St.  Bartholomew's  and  Christ  Church,  Bedford  Ave- 
nue, enjoyed  the  benefits  of  his  labors. 

For  six  months  Mr.  Fitch  had  been  in  declining  strength. 
Wednesday   evening,    January    2,    he   retired,    feeling    well. 

15 


About  midnight  there  came  a  sudden  heart  attack.  Physi- 
cians were  hastily  summoned,  but  the  end  came  very  peace- 
fully about  one  o'clock  in  the  morning,  January  3,  1907. 

Mr.  Fitch  published  "Plain  Words  to  Those  Who  Neglect 
the  Holy  Communion";  "Deborah,  or  Woman's  Mission  in  the 
Church  and  World" ;  "Martha  and  Mary";  "The  Type  of  a 
True  Christian  Home";  "Family  Prayer",  and  "American 
Protestantism  and  the  Church". 

Three  children  survive  him  by  his  second  wife,  who  was 
Miss  Emily  Brintnall  of  New  Haven, — Louis  H.  Fitch  of 
Newton  Centre,  Mass.  ;  Miss  Addie  B.,  who  resided  with  her 
father  till  his  death,  and  Mabel,  who  married  Arthur  W. 
Barnard  of  Boston. 


Rev.  Elisha  Brooks  Joyce,  minister  in  charge  of  St.  Mark's 
Parish  during  the  absence  of  the  rector  in  Europe,  June-Sep- 
tember 1882,  was  graduated  with  honor  from  Yale  University 
in  June  1879.  He  entered  the  General  Theological  Seminary, 
New  York  City,  in  the  autumn  of  that  year,  and  was  grad- 
uated with  honors  in  June,  .1882.  After  his  ordination  to  the 
diaconate  on  the  morning  of  Trinity  Sunday,  June  4,  1882,  he 
went  at  once  to  St.  Mark's,  officiating  and  preaching  his  first 
sermon  to  a  large  congregation,  at  Evening  Prayer  that 
Sunday. 

The  days  at  St.  Mark's  were  a  stepping-stone  to  a  larger 
work,  when,  with  the  God-speed  of  the  rector  and  people,  he 
accepted  the  curacy  of  Christ  Church,  New  Brunswick,  New 
Jersey,  and  entered  on  his  duties  the  first  of  October.  Here, 
very  unexpectedly,  the  whole  burden  of  the  work  devolved 
upon  him,  by  the  death  of  the  rector  in  December,  1882.  He 
was  at  once  made  minister-in-charge  of  this  venerable  parish; 
ordained  to  the  priesthood  in  May,  1883;  called  to  the  rector- 
ship and  instituted  on  the  seventh  of  November.  His  work, 
under  the  goodness  of  God,  has  developed  a  strong  character 
in  missionary  and  philanthropic  endeavor. 

16 


Mr.  Joj'ce  has  long  been  the  Trustee  of  the  General  Theo- 
logical Seminary  from  the  Diocese  of  New  Jersey,  examining 
Chaplain  to  the  Bishop  of  New  Jersey,  and  a  delegate  to  sev- 
eral Missionary  Councils. 


Rev.  Olin  Scott  Roche,  B.  D. ,  was  born  in  Wilmington,  Dela- 
ware, the  son  of  John  Alexander  and  Mary  Caroline  Roche.  He 
graduated  at  the  Brooklyn  Polytechnic  Institute  and  entered 
the  commission  house  of  M.  E.  Greene  &  Currie,  engaged  in 
the  Newfoundland  trade.  After  ten  years  of  business  life,  he 
studied  under  private  tutors  and  entered  the  General  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  graduating  in  1883.  Ordained  to  the  dia- 
conate  by  Bishop  Littlejohn,  he  at  once  assumed  charge  of 
Emmanuel  Church,  Islip,  Long  Island.  In  the  fall  of  the 
same  year,  he  became  assistant  minister  to  the  Rev.  Alfred 
B.  Beach,  D.D.,  at  St.  Peter's,  West  20th  Street,  New  York. 
Dr.  Beach,  after  a  rectorship  of  thirty-six  years,  became  im- 
paired in  health  and  Mr.  Roche  was  elected  rector  of  the  par- 
ish in  1890. 

He  co-labored  with  his  brother,  the  present  Rector  of  St. 
Mark's,  in  the  "Life  and  Sermons  of  Rev.  John  Alexander 
Roche,  M.D.,  D.D."  He  has  been  a  frequent  contributor  to 
the  series  of  Sunday  Sermons  appearing  on  the  editorial 
page  of  the  Neiv  York  Herald^  and  has  published  discourses 
on  various  subjects. 


Rev.  James  W.  Smith  was  the  son  of  Charles  Smith,  a 
successful  New  York  lawyer.  He  was  educated  at  the 
Grammar  School  of  Columbia  College  and  studied  law.  On 
the  death  of  his  father,  the  family  made  a  prolonged  tour 
in  Europe,  remaining  abroad  about  a  year  and  a  half.  On 
their  return  to  this  country,  they  settled  in  Brooklyn  and 
attended  St.  Mark's  Church.  James  entered  the  Sunday 
School  and  served  zealously  as  a  teacher.     His  mind  turned 

17 


to  the  ministry,  and,  entering  the  General  Theological  Sem- 
inary, he  acted  as  lay  reader  for  the  entire  term  of  nearly 
three  years.  Graduating  in  1886,  he  was  admitted  a  deacon 
by  Bishop  Littlejohn,  having  for  his  first  work  the  charge 
of  a  mission  at  Farmingdale,  Long  Island. 

In  1887,  Bishop  Littlejohn  at  the  Cathedral,  Garden  City, 
advanced  him  to  the  priesthood.  He  was  now  transferred 
to  Grace  Church,  Riverhead,  having  charge  also  of  neigh- 
boring missions.  From  1888  to  1890  he  was  rector  of  Christ 
Church,  Sag  Harbor;  from  1890  to  1893  he  was  at  Trinity 
Church,  Vincentown,  N.  J.  Ten  years  followed  as  rector  of 
St.  Paul's,  Kinderhook.  In  1903  he  took  charge  of  St.  An- 
drew's, Newark,  acting  also  as  Chaplain  of  St.  Barnabas' 
Hospital,  spending  four  years  in  the  work.  Bishop  Webb 
of  Milwaukee  was  seeking  men  to  build  up  his  missions 
and,  Mr.  Smith  offering  himself,  he  appointed  him  to  the 
charge  of  St.  Mary's,  Tomah,  which  embraced  among  its 
labors,  mission  work  among  the  Oneida  and  Winnebago 
Indians.  Here  he  is  still  engaged,  the  multifarious  duties 
having  many  signs  of  the  divine  blessing. 


Rev.  Allen  K.  Smith  will  be  kindly  remembered  by  older 
parishioners  as  a  lay  reader.  He  was  the  son  of  earnest 
Church  members  residing  in  Salt  Lake  City,  and  zealous  in 
maintaining  the  pure  doctrines  of  Christ's  Gospel  in  the  centre 
of  Mormonism.  The  young  man,  resolved  on  the  ministry, 
came  in  the  fall  of  1890  to  the  General  Seminary.  He  was  at 
once  engaged  for  our  work,  and,  during  the  entire  term  of 
three  years  at  the  Seminary,  he  assisted  at  the  Sunday  ser- 
vices and  taught  in  the  Sunday  School.  On  his  graduation 
he  was  ordained  deacon  by  Bishop  Potter  in  Calvaiy  Church, 
New  York,  May  19,  1893,  after  which  he  became  junior  as- 
sistant at  Christ  Church  Cathedral,  St.  Louis,  Mo.  Here,  in 
the  following  year.  Bishop  Tuttle  advanced  him  to  the  priest- 
hood.    In    1896  he  was  promoted  to  the  senior  assistantship, 

18 


with  seat  and  vote  in  Cathedral  Chapter.  He  found  time  also 
to  discharge  the  duties  of  Chaplain  at  St.  Luke's  Hospital,  at 
Bishop  Robertson  Hall,  and  at  the  St.  Luke's  Branch  of  the 
Guild  of  St.  Barnabas.  In  1902  he  married  May  Leverett 
Chase  of  St.  Louis,  four  sons  having  since  been  born  to  them. 
After  an  efficient  and  honored  identification  for  almost 
twelve  years  with  church  work  in  St.  Luke's,  he  took  the 
rectorship  of  Grace  Church,  Ellensburg,  Washington.  A 
strong,  manly  letter,  recently  received,  surveys  devoutly  the 
years  divided  between  the  hospitals,  asylums  and  jails  of  a 
great  city,  and  the  pioneer  work  in  a  far  Western  commun- 
ity, where  with  incredible  rapidity  the  foundations  for  im- 
mense social  developments  are  being  laid. 


Rey.  Charles  Riley  Abbot,  Pd.D.,  was  born  January  i, 
1825,  in  New  Canaan,  Conn.,  where  the  family  had  resided 
for  several  generations.  In  the  records  of  St.  Mark's  Church, 
New  Canaan,  the  name  of  his  father,  Jonathan  Abbot,  Jr., 
appears  as  early  as  1794  as  a  parishioner  residing  on  Smith's 
Ridge,  and  after  his  death  leaving  to  the  parish  a  sum  of 
money  and  some  land  in  Michigan. 

The  son  was  educated  at  the  New  Canaan  public  school 
and  at  the  academies  in  Norwalk  and  Ridgefield.  Devoting 
himself  to  teaching,  he  began  his  life  work  March  21,  1842,  in 
Pound  Ridge,  New  York,  going  later  to  Lewisboro'  and  Mt. 
Pleasant.  He  then  took  the  course  at  the  State  Normal  College 
at  Albany,  graduating  in  1848.  From  1849  to  1852  he  taught  in 
Westchester.  Coming  to  Brooklyn,  he  was  connected  with 
Schools  No.  5  and  No.  9,  from  1852  to  1855.  He  was  then 
instructor  at  Lewisboro'  and  New  Canaan,  and  Principal  of 
the  Farnum  Preparatory  School,  Beverly,  N.  J.  From  1863 
to  1869  he  was  superintendent  of  the  public  schools  in  Kings- 
ton, New  York.  In  the  latter  year  he  assumed  the  principal- 
ship  of  Public  School  No.  i  in  the  City  of  Brooklyn,  holding 
this  position  for  thirty-two  years,  to  the  day  of  his  death. 

19 


On  his  leaving  Kingston  for  this  city,  the  vestry  of  St. 
John's  Church,  Kingston,  addressed  him  in  an  eloquent 
tribute  which  declared  that  as  senior  warden  of  the  parish 
for  three  years,  he  had  discharged  his  duties  with  great  ac- 
ceptance to  the  congregation  and  with  earnest  zeal  for  the 
promotion  of  the  welfare  of  the  parish;  that  as  superintend- 
ent of  the  Sunday  School  he  had  labored  for  the  sacred  in- 
struction of  the  young;  that  as  lay  reader  he  had  repeatedly 
officiated  in  the  absence  of  the  rector,  Marion  F.  McAllister; 
and  that  as  a  man,  by  his  Christian  courtesy,  he  had  won 
the  esteem  and  confidence  of  the  parish  and  the  commenda- 
tion of  all  the  religious  interests  of  the  town. 

On  coming  to  Brooklyn  he  had  connected  himself  with 
St.  Mark's  Parish.  After  a  removal  from  the  church,  he 
again  returned  in  1889.  His  services  as  lay  reader  were 
gladly  utilized.  With  earnestness  and  gravity,  with  vener- 
able mien  and  gracious  voice,  he  bore  himself  with  a  quiet 
majesty  and  touching  humility.  Till  long  past  seventy 
years  of  age,  and  after  the  heavy  labors  of  the  week,  he  was 
present  at  the  morning  and  evening  services  on  Sunday  and 
on  Friday  nights,  though  he  came  during  the  closing  years 
from  a  distant  part  of  the  city. 

His  reading  of  the  lessons  was  admirable.  Of  a  rare 
personal  dignity,  possessed  of  a  well-modulated  voice,  carry- 
ing intelligence  into  whatever  he  did,  his  reading  of  the 
Scripture  lessons  was  at  once  artless,  unostentatious,  calm, 
illuminating  and  strangely  impressive.  In  a  subtle  way  he 
suggested  to  the  hearer  the  characters  of  the  speakers  in 
Holy  Writ.  "I  love,"  said  one  of  the  most  cultivated  men, 
"to  listen  to  him  read;  he  brings  the  patriarchs  trooping 
out  to  speak,  so  that  you  hear  their  very  voices." 

Late  in  life,  animated  by  the  desire  for  culture  that  had 
been  a  feature  of  his  career,  he  commenced  study  at  the 
School  of  Pedagogy  in  the  New  York  University,  completing 
the  course  and  graduating  in  1891  with  the  degree  of  Doctor 
of  Pedagogy. 

20 


In  1894  the  yearning  rose  to  terminate  his  life  with  the 
consecration  of  Holy  Orders.  All  his  days  he  had  lived  very 
close  to  the  altar  of  God,  but  he  now  felt  himself  allured  and 
constrained  by  a  new  and  more  strenuous  influence.  His 
ordination  was  encouraged  by  Bishop  Littlejohn  and  by  two 
others  of  the  soundest  and  most  sagacious  of  the  counsellors 
of  this  diocese, — Dr.  Charles  H.  Hall  and  Judge  Jasper  W. 
Gilbert.  He  was  ordained  by  Bishop  Potter  in  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Trinity,  Sunday,  January  28,  1895.  The  vestry 
at  its  next  meeting  passed  the  following  resolution: 

"The  Vestry  of  St.  Mark's,  in  recognition  of  the  valuable 
services  rendered  for  several  years  in  the  capacity  of  lay 
reader  by  Mr.  Charles  R.  Abbot,  express  their  gratification 
at  his  recent  ordination,  and  assure  him  of  their  appreciation 
of  his  kind  offices,  and  that,  while  they  feel  unable  to  attach 
any  salary  to  the  performance  of  his  duties,  they  take  pleas- 
ure in  electing  him  to  the  position  of  assistant  minister,  sub- 
ject to  the  mind  of  the  Rector;  and  they  trust  that  his  inter- 
est may  be  active  for  the  welfare  of  our  parish  for  many  years 
to  come." 

He  made  it  his  unselfish  ambition  to  actualize  St.  Paul's 
idea  of  the  deacon — a  man  grave,  commanding  respect,  not 
double-tongued,  temperate  and  not  greedy  of  gain,  in  domes- 
tic relations  an  example  to  the  Church  and  to  the  world. 

His  death  occurred  January  19,  190 1.  At  the  funeral  ser- 
vice, which  crowded  the  church  with  the  foremost  persons 
connected  with  public  education,  his  rector  said:  "He  would 
have  thought  it  presumption  to  offer  me  advice,  but  by  the 
might  of  faith  and  love  and  ministerial  fidelity  and  Christian 
optimism,  he  made  me  more  diligent  in  duty,  more  careful 
and  conscientious  in  study,  more  intrepid  in  enterprise,  and 
more  solidly  convinced  of  the  beauty,  wisdom  and  power  of 
our  common  Church." 

Rev.  Henry  Quimby  served  as  lay   reader   from    1894   to 
1897.     Some  of  our  people  will  remember  that  there   resided, 

21 


many  years  ago,  next  door  to  the  church,  on  the  north  side, 
the  family  of  Mr.  T.  W.  Quimby.  The  children,  three 
daughters  and  two  sons,  attended  the  Sunday  School.  Both 
the  sons  felt  themselves  called  of  God  to  the  ministry.  After 
receiving  a  public  school  education,  Henry  graduated  at  col- 
lege, and  completed  the  course  at  the  General  Theological 
Seminary  in  1897.  For  several  years  he  labored  both  in  Sun- 
day School  and  in  the  church  services.  His  faithful  work  in 
the  Sunday  School,  where  he  had  charge  of  a  very  interesting 
class  of  young  ladies,  is  well  remembered.  After  his  ordina- 
tion he  took  a  parish  in  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  but  later  removed 
to  Monrovia,  California,  where  he  is  at  present. 


Rev.  David  T.  Quimby  was  born  in  Brooklyn,  December 
23,  1874.  After  studying  at  Hobart  College,  Geneva,  and  at 
the  Philadelphia  Divinity  School,  he  came  to  the  General 
Theological  Seminary  in  New  York  and  graduated  with  his 
class  May  17,  1899.  He  was  ordained  deacon  by  Bishop 
Littlejohn  at  Garden  City,  on  June  28,  and  entered  on  the 
duties  of  assistant  minister  at  the  Church  of  the  Messiah, 
Brooklyn.  He  was  known  as  a  careful,  conscientious  and 
singularly  faithful  deacon.  On  the  loth  of  June,  1900,  Bishop 
Littlejohn  advanced  him  to  the  priesthood. 

Very  quickly  after  this  his  health  failed,  it  being  believed 
that  his  intense  application  to  his  studies  at  the  General 
Seminary  had  permanently  injured  his  constitution.  Resign- 
ing his  assistantship  in  November,  1900,  he  suffered  from  a 
serious  malady  for  several  years.  He  died  January  13,  1908. 
It  is  not  a  long  record  of  service,  but  by  the  grace  of  God  it 
is  one  that  leaves  a  beautiful  memory  of  purity,  loyalty, 
earnestness  and  consecration. 


Rev.  George  V.  Dickey  came  to  our  Parish  from  the  Pres- 
byterian ministry,  Easter  Day,  1904,  desiring  to  be  prepared 

22 


for  confirmation.  He  promptly  took  up  work  in  our  Sunday 
School  and  was  duly  presented  to  the  Bishop  a  few  months 
later.  He  had  been  carefully  educated  for  the  ministry,  en- 
tering the  Freshman  Class  of  Parsons  College,  Fairfield, 
Iowa,  in  1886,  graduating  in  1890.  In  the  same  year  he  en- 
tered the  Junior  Class  of  Princeton  Theological  Seminary. 
The  summer  of  1891  was  occupied  by  mission-work  in  Illinois, 
the  church  requesting  that  he  should  continue  without  return 
to  the  Seminary.  In  the  fall  of  1892,  however,  he  decided  to 
resume  his  studies  and  went  to  the  University  at  Princeton, 
giving  two  years  to  special  work  in  the  departments  of  Philos- 
ophy and  History.  In  the  fall  of  1894  he  took  up  once  more 
his  theological  studies  in  the  Seminary  at  Princeton.  From 
1895  he  gave  two  years  to  mission-work  in  Kentucky,  receiv- 
ing the  degree  of  B.D.  from  the  theological  seminary  of 
Louisville,  in-i897.  Continuing  his  ministry  in  Louisville, 
he  attended  post-graduate  lectures  in  Biblical  Theology,  and 
in  the  Philosophy  of  Kant.  Ordained  as  a  Presbyterian  min- 
ister in  1898,  he  labored  in  Louisville  and  in  Ohio,  and  for  a 
year  he  was  an  associate  of  the  Rev.  John  F.  Carson,  Pastor 
of  the  Central  Presbyterian  Church,  Brooklyn. 

After  Mr.  Dickey's  reception  as  a  candidate  by  the  Bishop 
of  Long  Island,  he  became  lay  reader  at  St.  Mark's,  his  fidel- 
ity winning  the  confidence  of  the  entire  parish.  On  his  ordi- 
nation to  the  diaconate,  he  was  first  at  St.  Ann's  on  the 
Heights,  and  then  took  charge  of  a  mission-work  near  East 
New  York,  which  developed  admirably  under  his  conscien- 
tious labors. 

He  has  been  filling  for  the  last  two  years  or  more,  most 
acceptably,  the  rectorship  of  St.  George's  Church,  Newport, 
Rhode  Island. 


Rev.  R.  Marshall  Harrison,  D.D.,  was  born  in  London, 
England,  of  Scotch  parentage.  He  was  baptized  in  St. 
Peter's   and   confirmed   by   the    Bishop   of   Rochester  at  St. 

23 


Ann's,  both  churches  in  the  City  of  London.  Soon  after  his 
confirmation  he  came  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  was  thrown 
almost  exclusively  among  Baptist  people,  and  drifted  into 
that  Church,  eventually  entering  its  ministry.  To  secure 
special  preparation  for  this,  he  returned  to  England,  where 
he  spent  four  years  in  the  Pastor's  College  under  the  presi- 
dency of  the  Rev.  Charles  Hadden  Spurgeon.  From  this  in- 
stitution he  was  graduated  with  honor. 

Again  coming  to  the  United  States,  he  was  ordained  to 
the  Baptist  ministry  at  New  Durham,  New  Jersey,  where  he 
remained  two  years.  This  was  followed  by  three  years  at 
Hackensack,  in  the  same  State,  and  that  by  four  years  at 
Quincy,  111.  Then  followed  nine  years  of  service  in  New 
York  City,  first  at  Alexander  Avenue,  in  the  Borough  of  the 
Bronx,  and  then  at  Bedford  Heights,  in  the  Borough  of 
Brooklyn, 

In  a  recent  letter  Dr.  Harrison  says: 

"Thirteen  years  have  passed  since  I  first  entered  St. 
Mark's  Parish.  I  was  looking  towards  the  church  that  had 
been  the  spiritual  home  of  my  earliest  years,  but  from  which 
I  had  been  separated  by  unavoidable  changes  in  my  environ- 
ment. After  a  pleasant  interview  with  the  sainted  Bishop 
Littlejohn,  who  encouraged  me  to  go  on  with  Holy  Orders 
in  view,  and  advised  me  to  associate  closely  with  St.  Mark's, 
I  was,  with  the  Diocesan's  consent,  made  lay  reader  of  the 
Parish,  in  which  position  I  continued  until  ordained  deacon, 
on  St.  Peter's  Day,  1898,  with  the  unanimous  concurrence  of 
the  Standing  Committee. 

"My  first  sermon  as  a  clergyman  was  preached  in  St. 
Mark's,  and  when,  in  due  course,  I  was  advanced  to  the 
priesthood,  my  first  Declaration  of  Absolution  was  pro- 
nounced there.  Here,  too,  I  continued  to  work  until  called 
temporarily  as  curate  to  the  Church  of  the  Incarnation,  the 
Rev.  J.  G.  Bacchus,  D.D.,  Rector. 

"I  soon  passed  to  St.  Ann's,  the  Rev.  Reese  F.  Alsop, 
D.D.,    Rector,  where   I  served    as   curate    for    three    years, 

24 


during  the  whole  of  which  period  I  superintended  the  morn- 
ing Sunday  School,  and  for  one  year  the  afternoon  Sunday 
School  also.     These  were  busy  and  joyous  years. 

"On  October  i,  1901,  I  assumed  charge  of  Holy  Trinity 
Memorial  Chapel,  Philadelphia,  where,  in  addition  to  the 
main  edifice,  there  are  also  a  commodious  Sunday  School 
building,  a  well-equipped  Guild  House,  a  residence  for  the 
minister  and  an  endowment  of  $330,000." 


Rev.  Wm.  Montgomery  Downey  was  born  in  New  York 
City  and  graduated  at  St.  Stephen's  College,  Annandale,  in 
1886,  receiving  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  in  1887.  He 
graduated  from  the  General  Theological  Seminary,  New 
York,  in  1889,  and  in  the  fall  of  that  year  was  called  to  the 
rectorship  of  the  Church  of  the  Redeemer,  Merrick,  Long 
Island.  In  1892  he  accepted  the  position  of  assistant  min- 
ister in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  Harlem.  Four 
years  later,  in  1896,  he  assumed  charge  of  the  Church  of 
the  Redeemer,  Plainfield,  New  Jersey.  In  1898  this  parish 
was  consolidated  with  that  of  the  Holy  Cross,  and  Mr. 
Downey  was  elected  rector  of  the  combined  churches,  hold- 
ing the  position  with  great  efficiency  for  six  years. 

In  1906  he  became  assistant  minister  at  St.  Mark's, 
Brooklyn. 

These  are  the  men  respecting  whom  we  would  urge  the 
apostolic  counsel,  "considering  the  issue  of  their  life,  imi- 
tate their  faith." 

As  we  draw  out  the  brief  stories,  we  know  that  while 
the  world  has  forgotten  some  of  them,  as  some  day  it  will 
forget  us,  in  spite  of  all,  their  church  lives  and  should, 
thru  an  indefinite  future,  honor  that  God  in  whose  name 
and  for  whose  sake  they  prayed  and  struggled,  perhaps  even 
thinking  that,  like  St.  Paul,  they  had  fought  with  the  wild 
beasts  of  neglect  and  poverty  and  opposition. 

25 


Let  us  yield  them  a  reverent  gratitude.  We  may  think 
of  them  all  as  members  of  that  glorious  company  thru  the 
ages,  who,  having  witness  borne  to  them  thru  their  faith,  re- 
ceived not  the  promise.  They  were  tempted  by  many  a 
burdensome  enterprise,  by  many  a  divided  or  unfriendly  ves- 
try, by  many  a  treasurer's  failure  to  meet  the  parochial  obli- 
gations. In  more  than  one  instance  "they  wandered  about, 
destitute,  afflicted,  tormented."  Not  one  of  them  but  sought 
to  promote  the  salvation  of  the  people  committed  to  his 
charge,  by  faithfully  administering  the  Sacraments,  and  by 
his  life  and  doctrine  setting  forth  the  true  and  lively  Word 
of  the  Lord.  From  Peck  to  Fitch  and  Abbot  and  Downey, 
they  labored  as  in  God's  sight,  longing  for  the  gracious  event 
that  their  ardent  desires  pictured,  but  that  their  eyes  never 
saw. 

The  divine  command  is  that  His  disciples  follow  Him  with 
no  thought  of  fame  or  influence,  or  riches.  The  minister  is 
doing  God's  work,  and  heaven  allows  him  such  pay  as  is  good 
for  him.  That  was  a  genuine  Christly  ministry  after  which 
an  executor,  charged  with  the  duty  of  publishing  some  ser- 
mons, said  to  the  printer:  "Print  it  quick:  ministers  are  soon 
forgotten."  That  was  a  noble  priestly  life,  albeit  crushed  by 
neglect,  that  Zola  has  drawn  for  us  in  his  story  of  "Lourdes," 
as  he  takes  us  down  into  the  ruined  foundations  of  the  church 
that  had  been  projected  by  the  humble  cure  who  had  watched 
over  the  souls  of  the  people  before  the  renown  of  the  grotto 
had  spread  thru  the  world. 

Henry  Van  Dyke,  in  "Out  of  Doors  in  the  Holy  Land," 
tells  of  a  statue  that  once  stood  in  Csesarea  Philippi,  erected 
in  honor  of  a  "Priest  of  Pan."  To-day  all  the  inscription  re- 
mains save  that  the  tooth  of  time  has  eaten  away  the  name  of 
the  man. 

What  business  has  the  true  priest  with  ease  or  distinction 
or  social  power?  Let  him  live  his  honest,  and  true,  and 
obedient  life,  and   leave  renown  alone.     Christ  seemed  not 

26 


careful  about  this.       "Rejoice  rather  that   your   names  are 
written  in  heaven." 

Let  us  perpetuate  with  their  zeal  the  work  they  loved. 
"Imitate  their  Faith." 

Possibly  President  Taft  was  right  when  he  told  the  Uni- 
versity of  Pennsylvania  that  the  march  of  culture,  by  raising 
up  powerful  personalities  in  journalism,  teaching,  engineer- 
ing, invention,  transportation,  electricity,  commerce,  manu- 
factures, and  artistic  production,  had  impoverished  the  min- 
istry, which,  he  said,  does  not  now  attract  men  of  genius  and 
brilliancy. 

Whatever  force  we  are  to  allow  to  such  reasoning,  it  would 
appear  to  be  the  divine  requirement  simply  that  such  men  as 
take  up  the  grand  commission,  be  they  rude  or  polished,  be 
they  forceless  or  aggressive,  should  show  loyalty  to  their 
master,  remembering,  "Not  by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by 
my  spirit,  saith  the  Lord." 

As  we  call  up  these  careers,  many  of  them  now  ended,  we 
are  impressed  with  the  unsearchable  wisdom  of  God,  who 
chose  an  instrument,  seemingly  so  weak  as  the  ministry,  to 
achieve  so  vast  a  work  as  the  perpetuation  of  His  church. 
Truly  the  treasure  is  contained  in  earthen  vessels!  Truly  it 
has  pleased   God,  thru  the  foolishness  of  preaching  to  save 

men. 

Here  is  the  lesson  for  to-day.  Society  may  seem  spirit- 
less, yes,  dead:  but  let  the  prophesying  go  on.  It  is  Christ's 
command,  "Go  preach  my  gospel  to  every  creature."  Our 
duty  is  not  to  be  remitted,  but,  tho  we  see  deadness  in  the 
congregation  and  feel  hopelessness  in  our  own  hearts,  we  are 
to  cry,  "Awake  thou  that  sleepest,  and  arise  from  the  dead: 
and  Christ  shall  shine  upon  thee."  As  an  instrumentality, 
preaching  may  seem  utterly  weak  and  inefficient,  but  even  to- 
day we  have  cases  where  it  works  as  in  the  prophet's  vision : 
just  as  dried  bones  stirred  then,  dead  souls  can  be  startled 
now.  Oftener  than  we  think,  as  the  minister  denounces  God's 
wrath   on  sin,  or  holds  out  the  prospect  of  the  star-decked 

27 


crown  to  the  faithful,  there  is  a  moving  among  the  prostrate 
souls,  an  agitation  perhaps  inaudible  to  men,  but  heard  by 
the  angels,  who  rapturously  cry,  "Behold,  he  prayeth!" 

Let  us  continue  sowing,  as  often  they  did,  in  tears,  know- 
ing that  some  will  yet  reap  in  joy. 

From  this  church  may  there  come,  in  the  future,  some  soul 
of  supreme  consecration  and  of  great  usefulness  in  the  sight 
of  God:  some  preacher  who  shall  move  the  heart  of  multi- 
tudes, some  teacher  who  shall  lead  the  thought  of  the  Churches 
in  new  directions ;  some  reformer  who  shall  strike  down  vener- 
able abuses  and  conduct  Christendom  to  better  activities; 
some  scholar  who  shall  cause  new  light  to  break  out  of  the 
sacred  book;  some  missionary  burning  with  love  and  enthusi- 
asm for  distant  and  savage  peoples;  some  translator  who  shall 
write  the  Bible  in  languages  scarcely  known  as  yet  to  our  uni- 
versities; some  doctor,  some  martyr,  some  saint,  some  man 
whose  zeal  for  the  house  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts  shall  consume 
him ;  some  woman  willing  to  lay  all  earthly  prosperity  and 
happiness  on  the  altar  of  God ;  some  child  who  shall  teach 
anew  Christ's  lesson,  that  in  purity  and  innocence  and  the 
forgiving  and  forgetful  temper  mankind  are  to  know  that  of 
such  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 

The  defeats  and  trials  of  these  good  men  summon  us  to 
high  courage  and  cheerful  sacrifice  of  self. 

The  past  sends  us  a  lesson  here.  Let  us  not  miss  it.  "Re- 
member them  that  had  the  rule  over  you,  which  spake  unto 
you  the  Word  of  God ;  and  considering  the  issue  of  their  life, 
imitate  their  faith."  Let  us  cast  away  the  timidity  that 
baffled  their  efforts,  and  let  us  reveal  the  far-sighted  boldness 
that  will  crown  their  tearful  planting  with  abundant  spiritual 
harvests. 


28 


PHOTOMOUNT 
PAMPHLET  BINDER 

Manu/aelurtd  bft 

&AYLORD  BROS.  Inc. 

Syrtcut*,  N.  Y. 

Stockton,  Calif. 


BX5920.B8S5R9 

St.  Mark's  sixtieth  anniversary 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00020  5809 


"■^W-'  ^        #s1 


'^"S^^iji 


